The 2019 Recap

This was another really good year, and even though I feel all good vibey about it, it seems like a huge blur and I can't seem to recall what even happened in it!!

I'm referencing my blog to refresh my memory. Unsurprisingly, travel continued to be huge in 2019 for me...

I went back to France, and visited Bordeaux for the first time since I left in 2007... I saw Switzerland and Northern Ireland for the first time, including a visit to Giants Causeway, and got to visit Shannon and Luke for a few days and got to experience the best aquarium in the world!

I went to breathtaking Burma (you likely know it as Myanmar, but it'll always be Burma to me), and the lackluster Dubai and Abu Dhabi (although Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque was mind-blowingly stunning), and found my new favorite country Vietnam.

I turned 33 at Disneyland, got my first tattoo and lost my luggage in Morocco. I went to what I swore would be my last Coachella and spent 48 hours in El Salvador and met Jessica in Panama where I watched their elections from my balcony.

I had back-to-back conferences in DC in May and July, saw Book of Mormon finally and went back to my college days with AJ at the French festival in Santa Barbara and revisited New York City for the first time since leaving in 2013. We cried over the horrible horrible final season of Game of Thrones.

AJ and I both got to see Brazil... both Sao Paulo (where neither of us want to return) and Rio de Janeiro (that we definitely didn't see enough of) and partied way too hard for our ages with Jessica in Buenos Aires, now determined to go back and see more of Argentina.

I discovered a new favorite country in Russia, met friends who doubled as tour guides in St Petersburg, and took the train into the European Union, which produced a cute little train entry stamp in my passport, for a week in Helsinki, returning with reindeer hide in tow after my last-minute day trip to Estonia.

I explored my breadmaking abilities and sat front row for Nate Bargatze. I lost my childhood friend Kandace who I still mourn.

I survived a typhoon in Japan and visited Tokyo Disney Sea as my reward and survived the enormous sprawling metropolis of Seoul, South Korea, coming home with some great facial products as my reward, and then served as juror number 8 on my first jury ever, and discovered Marco Polo.

I saw long-desired-to-see Mexico City and the Teotihuacan temples, and got to experience the beautifully lush and culturally rich Colombia. I welcomed in 5 new babies alongside my friends and cousin: Alyse's Oliver, Marisa's Lyla, Iris's Landon, Brianna's Lilyanna and Shirley's Liam.

We celebrated my grandmother turning 102 years old, and AJ and I celebrated completing 1 year of marriage and I got LASIK after a decade of dreaming.

With some fun already set up for 2020, it's looking to be a good start into the Roaring 20s.

Wishing you all a beautiful conclusion to the decade.

Last Weekend of the 2010 Decade

AJ went to enjoy Vegas this weekend with his friend in Denver, and I got the house to myself this weekend, which actually translated into Kathleen spending Saturday and Sunday over, and Tawny coming over on Saturday night too. Marco Polo brings people together!

On Friday night though, I decided to start a 30 day yoga challenge, and I guess there's just something about a human on the floor that attracts cats because Khaleesi was very curious and all over the place. Since I did it in the living room, I was able to review it all on the petcube.

This was the first time I sensed judgmental eyes on me
(and I was right!)

Khaleesi being curious

She fell asleep like this - looks like her own yoga!

On Saturday, Kathleen and I broke open my Mulan puzzle. It was, as usual, frustrating and addicting and we got it done in about 24 hours.

It's so beautiful! And it went too fast! I have a mind to crumble it up and then put it back together myself.

Nannerz playing with her Christmas toy

Today I was able to go visit my cousin Brianna and play with her kids (who are getting so big!) and meet Lilyanna, and then catch my mom for a coffee break. I've cut out sugar for the foreseeable future (I'm legit addicted!) so I have to forego flavored lattes and I've rediscovered my love of flat whites.

Now I've got to finish up work for my last working day of the year and get ready for New Year's Eve tomorrow. I made the mistake of hosting... here come the roaring 20s!

Avert Your Eyes If You're Done With My Wedding

I know I'm the only person in the world who still cares about my wedding, and that's fine. I really thought that we were all completely done with it too... but then my bridesman, Rafael, the King of Latergram, decided to send me all of his photos from our wedding this month (yes, over a year later).

So, now I have even more photos to enjoy! I took a sampling of the best ones - skip this post if you're over this!

Approaching the first look

Neat shot without photographers in it!

Raf snuck this shot of Rob during the ceremony!

Right after the recessional!

It looks like I'm marrying my Father in Law LOL

The Prominents!

We need a name for the four of us...

Beautiful Festival of Lights 2018 (they moved the Ferris wheel
for 2019... so glad it was so close by for our wedding!)

My favorite photo... AJ's expression says it
all. He was exactly in that shape, Raf captured
it perfectly haha! And that's my dirty martini
that Pearo bought for me!

Back to what feels like work on a Saturday...

Christmas Puzzle

I love puzzles so much I got two of them for Christmas! One with a jungle theme featuring a lot of jungle cats, and another that's a beautiful Thomas Kinkade rendition of Mulan that is just breathtakingly beautiful. But I've been working on this puzzle since last weekend; it's one of my favorite BlackOutTime tradition (Black Out being these last weeks of December when no one knows what day it is or what's going on) and I love to see the progress too. Kathleen maybe laid down a piece or two but otherwise I did it all myself and it was hard!

Yep, that's Love Actually!

And then of course, the last piece is always the sweetest!

And this was just during a time I was watching Broad City and working on the puzzle, Khaleesi was also enjoying the show too!

In other news, AJ and I really had a hashtag blessed Christmas. We celebrated with his family on Christmas Eve. It was pretty perfect, the house was beautiful and we had a fire going and a great cheese plate and a really nice fancy steak dinner, and even Anana got her own bone.

We opened family presents and it was so much! AJ and I got cash, and Disney gift cards, and these beautiful monogrammed coasters from Anthropologie (I get more obsessed with that store on a daily basis). I got this fabulous mirror I want to put in the entryway, although it was shipped broken so we have to replace that, and linen dinner napkins from Anthropologie.

AJ and I did our own Christmas the next morning, over our traditional Christmas cinnamon rolls and I made us lattes (and we polished them off with some draught beer and Fireball), and opened our presents for each other. AJ did so much this year, I felt very humbled. I got my two puzzles (aww yeah), and he got me a Kate Spade ring dish and a pair of Kate Spade earrings, and then a long-coveted Atlas collection necklace from Tiffany's. I didn't even know that he remembered that I loved that collection.

It was a lovely Christmas Day by the fire doing not much of anything at all. I'm wondering how long I need to keep this puzzle in tact before I can destroy it and put it back in the box...

PS That tornado warning last night?? AJ woke me up to tell me about it. It didn't seem that weird, I feel like we occasionally get weird things like that but still... global warming!

Mele Kalikimaka

It's weird celebrating Christmas on a day that is not December 25, although I suppose it still feels a little more familiar than the Tahitian Christmas that we had last year (but I sure still miss that one too!)

I would like to point out that I'm pretty sure we had a quorum of new generation to perform Christmas carols for us, but we didn't get them up on stage. I think that needs to change next year!

What you can't tell by looking at these pictures was hearing Kacey Musgraves feature the Queue Sisters singing "Mele Kalikimaka" non-stop throughout the day...

A Patriotic Christmas

A Very Skrewbally Christmas

A Very Luca Christmas

If you're wondering about the sunglasses, it's that I can't wear eye makeup for like another week (possibly more) because of the LASIK, so this covered up my sad tired look. Don't believe me? Just look at the photos below from the photoshoot AJ and I went on! LOL

I wish I was Jewish!

On another note, I totally got LASIK done 5 years too late. I ruined it all... I'm not going into 2020 with 20/20 vision... I'm going into 2020 with 20/15 vision! It's even better than 20/20 vision! But, I should have got it done in 2014 so I could go into 2015 with 20/15 vision. Womp womp. Better late than never!

First time winner of LRC!

Yesterday, AJ and I went down to Riverside to look around the Festival of Lights. It's both annoying and fun that it changes every year, but it's still nice to look at the lights and see the vendors and of course, remember our wedding when we pass by the venue and enjoy the same season and time of year from our own wedding. (I know I need to let it go already - I just love downtown Riverside so much I can never get over it!).

Today I am working from home which is so lovely considering it's raining outside and I get to be inside with Anana sleeping next to me and the Christmas tree lit up and the house all festive and nice. I mean, aside from all of AJ's stuff all over the house that he needs to picked up, but we already knew that...